The Price of Distraction

A few days ago, a car crawled ahead as I was driving back from blood tests with my wife. Wondering why the driver moved so slow, I suspected they were glued to their phone. As we swerved around the vehicle, my suspicion was confirmed. Eyes fixed at a phone, watching videos, completely oblivious to the two-ton machine they were controlling.

"Can't people just wait?" I said to my wife. "It's so dangerous." Little did I know how prophetic these words would become in mere minutes.

Nearing home, we approached a final intersection under a freeway bridge. One of those complex junctions where timing and attention are critical. I stopped at the yield sign, watching fast-moving traffic merging onto the freeway. That's when I noticed another driver behind me looking down at her phone. Her attention completely diverted. I could see her head bobbing downward in my rearview mirror, the blue light illuminating her distracted face.